Monthly Archives: May 2012

Hundreds take part in local Walk MS Fundraising efforts by N.J. Metro Chapter go toward patient services, research BY JENNIFER AMATO Staff Writer NORTH BRUNSWICK More than 400 walkers raised over $16,000 in cash during the 24th annual New Jersey Metro Chapter Walk MS, which was held at Babbage Park in North Brunswick on April 15. According to Linda Rossi, manager of grants and programs, the number will increase as online and future donations are added, working toward the sites goal of $100,000. Last year, the site brought in more than $73,500 for patient programs, support services, research initiatives and professional education. Over the past two years, the New Jersey Metro Chapter has brought in $2.5 million for research alone. Its invaluable what its going to do for people with MS and their families and caregivers, she said. Recent, newly established awareness campaigns include MS NOW (No Opportunity Wasted) to stop the diseases activity and restore function; MS Kills Connections, but Connections Kill MS to spread the word about MS; and the MS Youth Movement to engage youth through volunteer opportunities and education. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurological disorder that attacks the central nervous system, interrupting functions between the … Continue reading →

Ann Romney said Thursday that it felt like a rug being pulled from underneath you when she found out about her multiple sclerosis diagnosis. Romney, in a brief clip from an interview airing in full Friday on Foxs Americas Newsroom, described the time after her diagnosis in 1998 as a hard time in my life. Its like a rug being pulled out from underneath you, she said. And then what are you left with? And then you really have to evaluate. Who am I? Who am I really? Am I just what is identified as a teacher, a mother, you know, a professor, a business person? Those labels that we have that we so identify with in life. If everything is taken away from us, what are you really left with? Ann Romney credited her husband Mitt with giving her the greatest strength to cope with her new life with MS. And thats where I was, and its a struggle, she said. And it was a hard time in my life. And for Mitt, thats where he gave me the greatest strength. He was the one reminding me that it wasnt what I did why he loved me, it was … Continue reading →

Relying too much on brain scans appears to be one reason doctors each year misdiagnose multiple sclerosis in hundreds of patients whose symptoms are caused by some other disease. Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University and the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center surveyed 242 multiple sclerosis specialists in the U.S. to find out how often they see patients who have been misdiagnosed. Among the 122 respondents, more than 95 percent said they saw at least one patient in the past year diagnosed with MS by another medical provider, but the specialist "strongly felt" the patient had some other disease. Three out of four specialists said they saw three or more misdiagnosed patients within the past year. The authors estimate that the 122 specialists saw 600 patients in a year who had been given an incorrect diagnosis of MS. An estimated 280 of the misdiagnosed patients were receiving therapy for MS with a disease-modifying drug, which can cause serious side effects and cost $40,000 or more per patient per year. "Some of these patients have had this diagnosis for years," says lead author Dr. Andrew Solomon, an assistant professor at the University of Vermont College of Medicine, who began the … Continue reading →

Public release date: 9-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Todd Murphy murphyt@ohsu.edu 503-494-8231 Oregon Health & Science University PORTLAND, Ore. It is relatively common for doctors to diagnose someone with multiple sclerosis when the patient doesn't have the disease a misdiagnosis that not only causes patients potential harm but costs the U.S. health care system untold millions of dollars a year, according to a study published online today in the journal Neurology. The study is based on a survey of 122 multiple sclerosis specialists nationwide and was conducted by researchers at Oregon Health & Science University and the Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Neurology is the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The survey found that all but six of the multiple sclerosis specialists more than 95 percent had seen at least one patient within the past year who had been diagnosed with MS by another medical provider, but the MS specialist "strongly felt [the patient] did not in fact have MS." Almost three-quarters of the MS specialists said they had seen at least three patients within the past year who they believe had been misdiagnosed. More than one-third of respondents said they had seen six … Continue reading →

The FDA is warning health-care professionals and patients that injuries and death have been associated with the use of the experimental procedure. The therapy was devised by Italian physician Paolo Zamboni, who says MS is caused by vein blockages in the neck and upper chest that prevent blood from being drained from the brain. He says opening these veins with balloon angioplasty reverses symptoms of MS; Zamboni calls the vein blockages chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency or CCSVI. The FDA says studies exploring a link between MS and CCSVI are inconclusive, and the criteria used to diagnose CCSVI have not been adequately established. Scores of Canadians have travelled overseas to get the treatment; at least two Canadians are known to have died after undergoing the therapy. Dr. William Maisel, the chief scientist and deputy director for science in the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, says patients considering the treatment should discuss the pros and cons with a neurologist or other doctor familiar with MS and CCSVI. In a release, the FDA says it has learned of adverse events experienced by people who have undergone the treatment, including death, stroke, detachment and migration of stents that are sometimes used to … Continue reading →